1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording apparatus for recording onto a recording medium, and more particularly to a recording apparatus capable of taking an appropriate form depending on the service or non-service time.
2. Related Background Art
In recent years, host computers have been made in compact size as typically found in personal computers, and more recently, notebook type computers of A-4 size have spread widely. Correspondingly, recording apparatuses which are output devices for such computers have been developed in smaller sizes, whereby the notebook and slender parallelopiped types have appeared so as to be not only portable but also storable in the drawer of a desk.
In particular, recording means (recording head) of the ink jet type in which the ink is discharged by the use of heat energy can be readily fabricated with an arrangement having a high density of liquid channels (arrangement of discharge ports) by forming electricity-heat converters, electrodes, liquid channel walls and a ceiling plate as the film on a substrate by a semiconductor fabrication process such as etching, vapor deposition or sputtering, thereby allowing for further compactization.
However, with the progress of compactization for the transportation and storage, the difference (gap) between the optimal form for the service and that for the non-service has become evident, bringing about some inconveniences.
That is, it is preferable that the apparatus is as thin and compact in geometry as possible for the transportation or storage, whereas it is desirable on account of the utilization that the apparatus is retained in a shape suitable for the insertion, conveyance and exhaust of the sheet which is a recording medium, when used for the recording. Such a shape is generally quite different from a flat shape suitable for the transportation and storage. If the conveyance passage of a sheet is sought to approximate a preferably horizontal path, recording of the sheet is performed in a vertical direction, so that a recording head must be configured to be oriented in a longitudinal direction, when the recording apparatus is in the service state, thereby having a considerable height. And this may lead to an unstable attitude at the service time as the compactization and lighter weight of the whole apparatus have progressed.
It is required that unnecessary parts at the non-service time, such as an interface (I/F) connector, a power supply connector and a dip switch, are protected from being stained or damaged by the transportation and storage.